Drill gun



W. M. CUTLER Oct. 25, 1949.

DRILL GUN 6 Sheets-Sheet 1 Filed April 24, 1946 lnvenfor VT/ZzllaaeM Gui/er W. M. CUTLER Oct. 25, 1949.

DRILL GUN 6 Sheets-Sheet 2 Filed April 24, 1946 H NM mm 9 Inventor Wa [[a CG'M Guile)" W. M. CUTLER Oct. 25, 1949.

DRILL GUN 6 Sheets-Sheet 3 Filed April 24, 1946 Inventor WallaoeMCuzler u's At rrzey I 1949- w. M. CUTLER 2,486,008

DRILL GUN Filed April 24, 1946 6 Sheets-Sheet 4 fizventor Wallace Cutler w. M. CUTLER Oct. 25, 1949.

DRILL GUN Filed Aprii 24, 1946 6 Sheets-Sheet 5 Inventor WaZZaceM Cu zler' W. M. CUTLER Oct. 25, 1949.

DRILL GUN 6 Sheets-Sheet 6 Filed April 24, 1946 inventor Vvallace M CuzZer Patented Oct. 25, 1949 .UNI TED STATES PATENT F FICE DRILL GUN :Wallace Cutler, Gloucester, Mass., assignor to United Shoe MachineryCorporation, Flemington, N. J a. corporation'of New Jersey Application April 24, 1946,.-Serial. No. 664,612

. '9,Claims. .(Cl.35?25) Thisinventionzrelates totraining devices and wmore particularly toaa drill gun for-use intrain- .ing personnel to..load an actual gun.

The-efiicientloading of a gun commonly requireswell-timed ammunition-passingoperations on the part of several men. All ammunition .passers must work. together and in. synchronism with the operating cycle of thelgun in .order to attain 'a; high .rate of fire; Since-.theloading cycle-mayyary, depending-upon whether it in; cludes a fuse-setting period, thegun crewshould also be trained to function indifferent loading rhythms, as well as to avoid the danger of injury from the recoil of-the gun.

In view of the foregoing, an object ofuthe in= vention is toaprovide an improveddrill gun requiring a'minimum of dummy ammunition and the operational-rfeatures ofwhich, relating to loading, are similar to itsrprototype.

To this end; the illustrated gun.,is-.actuated by thepresentation of a-dummy; shell sthereto to project orsram the-shellinto the barrel and to simulate: recoil, all with. substantially .thessame speed and timing as .thatof the prototype. In order to simulate .the. loadingcycle of an actual gun when it includes a fuse-.settingoperation, provision is made in the-illustratedvgun for interrupting. the forward movement of .theshell into the gunfor the periodrequired :to. set a fuse and then automatically completing the movement of the shell.

The .illustrated: gun is also.:constructedand arranged to stop-the,forwardmovement of, the

shell and to..utilize this movement immediately to return the shell to a convenient position,out; side the gun, for handling by the first-ammunition passer.

These and other objects andfeatures will .now be described in detail with reference to.,the accompanying drawings andwill be. pointed out in the appended claims.

In thedrawings,

. Fig. 1 is a side elevation .of anillustrative drill gun embodying the invention;

.gFig. 2 is a plan View of ,thei .drill .gun shown in' Fig. 1;

i Fig. 3 .is a. plan view ofthetransmission .box .with its top removed at the level indicated by the line IIIIII inFig. 1;

Fig. 4 is a sectional elevation of the transmission box, the section beingfltaken. along. the line IVIV ,in Fig. 3;

Fig. 5 is a sectional plan view of ,the transmissionbox, the sectionbeingfltaken,a1ong;the

line V'V,.in Fig. 4;

,Figrfiisa sectional end view of the breech end of the drill gunshowing the ramming mecha- .1',nism',--.the section: being taken along the line VI.V.I in Fig. 2;

- Fig., .'7 -.is asectional plan view of the, mechanism, illustrated in Fig.6, the section being taken along the line, VII,-VII in Fig. 6; ',:Fl{{. 8 .is a fragmentary sectional view ,ofa part of the gunbarrel. and ejector chute, the section being taken in a, plane including; the axes of the barrel andchute.

Theqillustrated-drillgun comprises a barrel -,assembly-including-a ,tubular barrel l0 (Figs. 1

I and 2), which is; fixed to .a,.housing 12 having trunnions M :at the rearend thereof. The trunnions are rotatably mounted in bearings I6, it which are fixed .to the upper ends of arms l8, l8 arranged. to extend-upwardly from frames 29, the latter beingthe counterpart of the usual gun carriage. The frames 20 are supported bya platform 22, the. shape of which conforms to that 1 of. the prototype of the drill gun. The gun is adapted to bemovedabout on-skids 24 which are fixed to the bottom of. the-platform.

. as a result of whichzthenround is ejected from the gun through an ejectorchute 32, (Figs. 1 and 2) which is inclined-downwardly and rearwardly fromthe barrel.v The round is to be caught by one ofthe gun crew in. training and is again to be passed through the rolls 26, 2B. This procedure may be. continued for aslong as may be necessary thoroughly toacquaint. the gun crew withthe firingcycle of thegun. Further to simulate the operatingconditions of. an actual gun the barrel l0 maybe elevated, by turning a hand wheel 34,, througha range. extending from a. few .degrees of depression to an elevation of 90.

. Furthermore, the recoil of an actual, gun issimulated by a.recoilrlikemovementof abreech simulating member 35 at the breech end of the barrel 10, which member is moved rearwardly in timed relation to the forward movement of the round.

Power for driving the;1ro1ls 26 and 28 is provided by an electric motor 38 (Figs 1 and 2) which is fixed to the forward end of the housing l2 and drives a fly wheel 40 through belts 42. The fly wheel is fixed to a shaft 44 (Figs. 3 and 4) which is rotatably mounted in bearings 46, 46 in the ends of the transmission box. Fixed to the shaft 44 are a pinion 48 and a gear 50 which mesh with a gear 52 and a pinion 54 respectively, the last-mentioned gear and pinion being rotatably mounted on another shaft 56 (Fig. 5) which is directly below the shaft 44. The shaft 56 is rotatably mounted in the transmission box 30 on ball bearings 58, 58 and extends rearwardly of the gun to drive the rolls 26, 28. Associated with the gear 52 and pinion 54 are clutches 60 and 62, respectively, which may be selectively engaged with or disengaged from a quill 64. The quill is keyed to the shaft 56 and is movable axially of the shaft to establish a driving connection between the shaft and either the gear 52 or the pinion 54. As will be explained hereinafter, low and high speeds of the shaft 56 are utilized in succession, with an intervening period of stalling, when a loading cycle including a fuse setting operation is to be simulated. If the cycle is not to include a simulated fuse setting interval, only the high speed driving connections involving the gear 56 and pinion 54 are utilized.

The rear end of the shaft 56 is rotatably mounted in a bracket 66 (Figs. 2 and 6) which is integral with a cover 68 for a casing I0 which houses the rolls 26, 28. These rolls are driven by the shaft 56 through connections including a bevel-pinion "I2 fixed to the shaft and adapted to mesh with a bevel-gear I4, the latter being fixed to the upper end of a vertical shaft 16 rotatably mounted within a yoke I8. The yoke I8 has an upper arm 80 and a lower arm 82 in which is rotatably mounted a shaft 84 to which the roll 28 is fixed. The shaft 84 is driven from the shaft I6 by gears 86 and 88 which are fixed to the lower ends of these shafts. In a similar fashion, the roll 26 is carried by a shaft 89 which is rotatably mounted on another yoke 90 and is driven by a gear 92 fixed to its lower end. A gear 94, meshing with the gear 92, is fixed to a shaft 95 which is rotatably mounted Within the yoke 90. The shaft 95 is driven from the shaft I6 by a gear train comprising a gear 96 fixed to the lower end of the shaft 95, idler gears 98 and I00 rotatably mounted in the base of the casing I0, and a gear I02 which is fixed to the lower end of the shaft I6.

When a dummy round is presented to the gun, the nose of the round is directed into the opening between the rolls 26 and 28 provided by their V-shaped contour. This operation is facilitated by a pair of guide rolls I04 (Figs. 1 and 2) which are rotatably mounted on the rear end of the casing ID in such a position as to aline the axis of the round with that of the barrel. The rolls 26 and 26 are made of rubber or other similar yielding material and have serrated surfaces which are adapted to grip the nose of the round and project the latter into the barrel. The normal opening between the rolls is so narrow as to admit only the end of the round. However, as the forward movement of the round begins the rolls are separated by the round owing to its gradually increasing diameter, but maintain a yielding pressure upon the round. This action of the rolls is permitted by the rotatable mounting of the yokes 80 and 80 is the casing I0. The yokes, whenever thus moved, swing oppositely to each other and in equal amounts under the control of connections including cranks I06, I08 (Figs. 6 and 7) which are splined to the upper ends of the yokes 80 and 90 respectively and are connected to a slide II 0 by links II2. The slide H0 is normally held yieldingly against the head of a stud II4 by a coil spring II6, the stud being mounted in a bracket II8 which is integral with the cover 68. It is evident that the spring I I6 provides the yielding pressure of the rolls 26, 28 against the round. The normal spacing of the rolls 28, 28 in their closed position can be adjusted by setting up an adjusting nut II! which is threaded on the forward end of the stud II4.

At the beginning of a cycle in the operation of the gun the rolls 26 and 28 are rotated at about 116 R. P. M., providing a shell speed of about 130 feet per minute. The quill 64 (Figs. 3 and 5) at this time is held in engagement with the clutch element 60 and the low speed drive is effected through the gear and pinion 52 and 48. As the round progresses between the rolls 26 and 26 the increasing diameter of the round separates the rolls as explained above, and the corresponding movement of the yokes 80 and 90 is utilized, when a fuse setting operation is to be simulated, first to disengage the quill 64 from the clutch element 60 whereby the rolls 26 and 28 are stalled for a short period, and then to engage the quill with the clutch element 62 whereby the rolls are driven at an increased speed of about 996 R. P. M. pro- Viding a shell speed of about 830 feet per minute.

The quill 64 is operated in the manner described above by a lever I20 which is operated by a cam I22. This cam is rotated through one revolution for each cycle of operation of the gun. The lever I20 is pivoted on a stud I28 which is fixed to the transmission box 30 and at one end carries a roll follower I24 which is received in a groove I26 in the cam I22; Pivoted on the other forked end of the lever I20 (Fig. 4) are a pair of swivel blocks I28 which are received in a groove I30 in the quill 64. The cam I22 is fixed to a shaft I32 which is rotatably mounted in bearings I34, I36 arranged to extend upwardly from a pad I36. The pad is secured to the base of the transmission box by bolts I40. A sprocket I42 and a wellknown rolling-pin type of clutch I44 are mounted together on the forward end of the shaft I32. The clutch is under the control of a detent I46, the latter being fixed to the forward end of a control shaft I48. A chain I50 drives the sprocket I42 and is driven by another sprocket I52 which is keyed to the shaft 56. At the beginning of an operating cycle the detent I46 (Fig. 5) holds the actuating member I54 of the clutch I44 in its inoperative position against spring tension. Reverse movement of the shaft H32 and clutch B44 (which this spring tension tends to cause) is prevented by a pawl I56 which is pivotally mounted on the bearing I36 and is yieldingly seated in a notch I58 in the cam.

The control shaft I48 is arranged to slide axially in the bearing I36 and another bearing I60 in the rear end of the transmission box, the shaft at its rear end being connected to an arm I62 (Figs. 1 and 6) integral with and extending upwardly from the slide I I0. The shaft I48 is yieldingly held in its normal extreme rearward position by a spring I63 which seats in a recess in the .;.Shortly: afterFthe initiarr'iorwarctmovement of 4 the round hasrbegun .(for example; atethewtime when the usual bulge in the projectile passes'the x'rolls) the lateral operatingmovement of the rolls will have moved the slide I I0,.and hence the con trol shaft. i 38,v far enough rearwardly :to: remove the detent I46. (Fig. 5). fromgengagement withwthe actuating member I 54. Thus, the actuating mem- I ber permits the clutch I44to becomeengagedxwith the shaft I32 andtheucamil22know begins its rotation through one complete revolution.

The shape of the camzgroove; I26.is suchsthat the lever: I26 is first moved tom-disengage..nthe :clutch 66 and to holdthe'lever I20 sosthatethe period since the rolls 26 and28 are stalled by the friction between all the parts connectingthequill 64 with the rolls 26, 28 and a fusesettingxoperation is simulated. As soon as'the dwell in-"the gages the detent I46 the clutch: I44.wi11 be disengaged from the shaft I32. Shortly before the end of a cycle the quill 64 ismoved'out of engage I I ment with the clutch 62'. andzinto. engagement with the clutch 60 whereby the initial 'low. speed movement of the rolls 26 and 2-8 is resumedxpreparatory to a succeeding cycle of operation.

If the cycle of operation of the gun is not to include a fuse setting period, provision is made cm for operating the illustrated gun continuously at high speed. For settingthe gun to .operate in this fashion, a second detent :I66 is adapted to be rotated into the path of the member. I54 in a position opposite to the detent I46. The detent I66 is formed on a shaft I61 which :is: rotatably mounted at the side of the transmission box ::and is operated by a control handle I68. 'It;wi1l:n0w be apparent that when the member I54 strikes the detent I66 rotation of the cam I22 will be -drives rat-chain I18 .which""runsl over: another sprocket 1B0. The-platter. sprocket is rotatably 7' mounted on a shaft I82 .which'runs ins-:bearings 184 and: I86 at opposite ends of. the. transmission box. til-.scrAssociated with the sprocket- I810 is a clutch-i I88- which deliversa limited but suflicient torque tothe shaft I82 to;drive the member. 36.

1 However. the clutch will slip if.- the member 36 .meets-anyopposition, as would happen if one of -;the;gun crew were in the .path of the member.

wormilfill is fixed to the rear endzof the; shaft ::.-gear"I62 is rotatably mounted on a .shaftifil94 which is journaled in .a bearingylflfi atione side of th-e- .transmission box. .The outer end or the "shaft I94-carries an arm I98 (Figs..1 and 2);. on

the end of which is'pivotally mounted :axslotted 1 :block'; 200.;- This block is. arranged. slidably to receive a lever 202 which isfixed to oneend of a shaft 264, the shaft being rotatablymountedin a pair of-uprights 206 mounted on top of the-.transcam groove I26 has passed the roll I24,'.the shape mission box. A second lever 208, similar tocthe aboveementioned lever 202, is fixed toiethe other :end of the .shaft 264.v -le-vers'1202 .and208 are pivoted to links-.210 which The .lower ends of athe .';themselves-arepivoted to blocks 2I'2, thelatter bly; The :rods are:supportedforsliding move- 36 -.is .fixed to. the .rear .ends of the.flIOdSi2i4,i;thiS

--member beingso shaped as to traverse during its I the-drilLgun similar to that in the prototype rerecoil simulating movement a danger areaabehind sulting from its' own recoil. Itwill now be-uni derstood that whenxtheclutch I.'I4.is tripped the .arm' I98 will be rotatedthroughone complete revolution thereby oscillating. the levers. 202 and iitifl -iirstznearvvardlyv and then forwardly,: whereby-asimulatedrecoil movement is, imparted to the breech simulating member 36.

. r :2 I8. (Fig. 8)-.which is pivoted at 220 to the ejector ,closedxagainst. the barrel 5 0.

stopped. At this time the cam willhavemoved the lever I23 to engage the quill 64 with the. clutch 62 and until the handle I68 is operated toremove the detent 166 from engagement with the member I 54 the rolls will be operated at high speed.

At a predetermined time in the passage ofxthe round between the rolls .26 and 28.a;simu1ated recoil movement is imparted tothe breech simulating member 36 regardless of whethertheoperating cycle of the gun includes the simulatedfuse setting period or not. At a timewhen the .round has nearly passed the rolls 26 and 28 (as;'forexample, when the rim of the flange of :theshell case engages the rolls), the control shaft I48 will have been given an additional forward movement sufficient to disengage adetent I"I0 ,(F?igs. 3 and 5), which is mounted on the .shaft, from-the actuating pin I12 of a one-revolution clutch-.114.

At this point, the clutch 2' I14 completesnthe driving relation between connections, which: will presently be described in detail, for imparting a complete reciprocation of about two vfeet in, length to the member 36. A sprocket I'I6. (Fig. 4.); which is fixed to theshaft 44 adjacent to thepinion 48,

Asgtheuiumm round. is projected into the barrel ,I0; from the rolls 26 and 28, it passes a gate chute 32 so as to move out of the way of the round. A spring I222 normally-holds the gate The gate is thus opened (to its broken line-position in Fig. 8-) by thepassage of the round-andlater closes to its -ful1..line.position in which it provides acurved extension tetherear side of the chute 32-which .closes the barrel I0 with regard to reverse movement 0f.t]:1e..round. The round during its -for- -.Ward,.movement is urged-toward the right-hand side of ,thebarrel I0 not only by -thegate- -2I8 but also by a leaf spring2 24 which is-mounted at the junction of the chute 32 and the-barrel I0, as illustrated in Fig. 8. The forward-motion of wzthe .round is arrested and then reversedsli-ortly afterthenose of therroundstrikesaplunger' 226 ..the end of the barrel I0.

- vide. any desired initial compression in the spring 228. The outer end of therod 232 is housed by a tube-234 which is fixed to the cap 230; ltfiwill now be understood-thatafter forwardmotion of theudummymohnd has been: arrested, a*-'reverrse movement is imparted to the round by the expansion of the spring 228, whereupon the round again passes the spring 224 (Fig. 8) and is deflected by the gate 2l8 out of the barrel l and into the ejector chute 32. As the round emerges from the chute it is to be caught by a member ofthe gun crew and presented again to the rolls 26, 28.

Effective training in gun loading involves practice with the gun at various elevations since it generally becomes more and more difiicult to load a gun as its elevation increases. The elevation of the illustrated gun may be changed, with the above purpose in view, b turning the hand wheel 34 (Figs. 1 and 2) which operate elevating mechanism now to be described.

The hand wheel 36 is fixed to the upper end of a shaft 236 (Fig. l) which is rotatably mounted in a gear box 238 (Fig. 2) extending outwardly from the right-hand frame 28. The gear box houses a worm gear 21w (Fig. 1) which meshes with a worm 242 carried by the shaft 236. The

gear 240 is fixed to a shaft 244 which is mounted to rotate in bearings (not shown) in the frames 20. Secured to the shaft 244 in the central portion thereof is a pair of closely spaced sprockets 246 over which run a pair of chains 248. These chains are wrapped around the cylindrical periphery of a quadrant 250 which is attached to the housing 12 and therefore moves with it about the axis of the trunnions M. Idler sprockets 252 are arranged to keep the chains 248 taut and at the same time to insure a substantial angle of engagement between the chains and the sprocket 246. The quadrant 250 is of sufiicient extent to permit the gun to be moved in elevation from a position of a few degrees of depression to an elevation of 90. In order to render as uniform as possible the force required to move the gun in elevation at any part of its range of movement, the gun is counterbalanced by a pair of springs 254 which are spaced at equal distances from the quadrant laterally thereof. The springs are housed in tubes 256 which are fixed to the inner sides of the frames 20. Each spring 254 seats at its forward end on a closure at the forward end of each tube. The rear end of each spring is engaged by a seat 258 which is arranged to slide freely within its tube 256. Each of two chains 260 is attached at one end to one of the seats 258, extends out of the forward end of the tube and is wrapped about and attached to a sprocket 282. The sprockets 262 are fixed to a shaft 264 which also carries another pair of closely spaced sprockets 269 and is journaledat its opposite ends in the frames 26. Wrapped about and fixed to the sprockets 266 are a pair of chains 268 which also are wrapped about and fixed to the periphery of the quadrant 25!) close beside the chains 248. It will now be apparent that as the gun. is raised in elevation from its position as illustrated in Fig. 1, the seat 258 will be permitted to move rearwardly within the tube 256, whereby the compression of the spring is reduced in accordance with the diminished moment of the weight of the gun about the trunnions l4.

Having thus described my invention, what I claim as new and desire to secure by Letters Patent of the United States is:

1. A drill gun having a breech simulating member, mechanism for projecting a shell into said gun, recoil means for imparting a recoil simulating movement to said member, and control means operated by the shell during its movement into said gun for actuating said recoil means.

2. In a drill gun having a breech simulating member, mechanism comprising opposed members mounted for separating movement to receive a shell therebetween, said opposed members also being mounted for rotative movement together to project the shell into the gun, recoil means for imparting a recoil simulating movement to said breech simulating member, and control means operated by the separating movement of said opposed members for actuating said recoil means.

3. In a drill gun having a breech simulating member, rolls mounted to swing away from each other to receive a shell presented therebetween, driving means for rotating said rolls whereby the shell is projected into said gun, recoil means for imparting a recoil simulating movement to said breech simulating member, and means operated by the separating movement of said rolls for actuating said recoil means.

4. A drill gun comprising a-breech simulating member, opposed rolls mounted for separating movement to receive a shell therebetween, driving means for rotating said rolls. to project the shell into said gun, recoil means for imparting a recoil simulating movement to said breech simulating member, and means operated by the separating movement of said rolls for interrupting the operation of said driving means for a period equivalent to that required by a fuse-setting operation and for then actuating said recoil means.

5. In a drill gun, a barrel, opposed members mounted for separating movement to receive a. shell therebetween, driving connections for operating said members to project the shell into said barrel, and means actuated by the separating movement of said members successively to disengage and reengage said driving connections whereby the movement of the shell into said barrel is interrupted by a period of rest equivalent to that required by a fuse-setting operation.

6. In a drill gun, a barrel, mechanism for projecting a shell into said barrel, means for driving said mechanism said means comprising low-speed and high-speed connections, and means operated by the shell in response to its movement into said barrel for disengaging said low-speed connections and then engaging said high-speed connections thereby to provide discontinuous forward movements of the shell separated by a period of rest equivalent to a fuse-setting period.

'7. In a drill gun having a breech simulating member, a barrel, a pair of separable rolls adapted to receive a shell therebetween, recoil mechanism for imparting a recoil simulating movement to said breech simulating member,

, driving mechanism comprising low-speed and high-speed driving connections for rotating said rolls, means for disengaging said low-speed connections to stop said rolls whereby a fuse-setting period is simulated and then engaging said highspeed connections whereby the shell is projected into the barrel, and means for engaging said recoil mechanism with said driving mechanism after the engagement of said high-speed connections.

8. In a drill gun, a barrel, an ejector chute associated with said barrel, mechanism for projecting a shell into said barrel, a plunger in said barrel constructed and arranged yieldingly to arrest and reverse the movement of said shell, and a gate normally disposed across said barrel for directing the shell in its reverse movement from said barrel into said chute.

9. In a drill gun, a barrel having an ejector chute associated therewith, mechanism for projecting a shell into said barrel, a yielding stop in said barrel for arresting the initial movement of the shell and imparting a reverse movement thereto, and a gate normally disposed across said 1 A Number UNITED, STATES PATENTS barrel for directing the shell in its reverse move- I Name Date ment from said barrel into said chute, said gate 2,38 87 Taylor Sept. 25, 1945 being mounted to swing out of the path of the 5 2, 01,616 Clarke June 4, 1946 shell during its initial movement. 2,405,308 Jack Aug. 6, 1946 2,441,218 Bialek May 11, 1948 FOREIGN PATENTS Country Date Germany Mar. 20. 1911 WALLACE M. CUTLER.

REFERENCES CITED The following references are of record in the 10 N 32 file of this patent: 

